Pop-hating Piggies

[annakarenina]

Why do my house guinea pigs LOATHE pop music? If we ever put any on they run and hide, making warning noises and looking very uspet until it ends. They don't seem to be as bothered if the music is eminating from the TV, but anything else is out of the question, no matter how low the volume. The only pop artist they will tolerate is Dido, on whatever mechanism she is played.

[andy hughes]

Pop music has lots of rhythmic dynamics to make it appeal to the natrual rhythm responses we all possess - that's why we tap along to songs, hum, tap our feet etc. Some of these dynamics are sensed by us, but below or above our hearing range - not so for animals, who may find them distressing. Some songs could produce the animal response equivalent to hearing a jet engine from three feet away, or a cat sliding down a blackboard, and this appears to be the case with your guinea pigs. Dido's music is far smoother, designed to appeal to a different set of responses, which is why the pumping bets are absent, and don't distress your pets. The obvious answer is to move your guinea pigs out of earshot, or move your music out of range.

[incitatus]

You also have to remember that your guinea pig is a prey animal and a rodent. Any loud thumping moise is translated as threat by their tiny, confused rodent brains, and leads to panic. Life at the bottom of the food chain is tough.